Transcript Presentation Title

Updating Boulder’s work
zone traffic control
guidelines
Marni Ratzel
Bicycle & Pedestrian
Transportation Planner
GO Boulder/city of Boulder
GO Boulder
> Make it easier to
get around town
by…
> Providing “Great
Options” in
transportation.
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Pedestrian detour?
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Bikeway detour?
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Presentation overview
> About Boulder
> Update process
> Case study examples
> Draft policies
> Progress on practices
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About Boulder
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About Boulder
>
>
>
>
101,500 people
25 square miles
County seat
Home of CU-Boulder
serving 29,000
students
> Gateway community
to the Rocky
Mountains
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Biking System
> On-street lanes miles*
175 built
 69 more proposed
*Includes bike shoulders
> 95% of arterial streets
have bike facilities
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Boulder’s Greenway System
> a series of corridors along
Boulder Creek and six of its
tributaries
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Biking System
> Multi-use path miles
 111 built
 66 more proposed
> Underpasses
 74 built
 53 more proposed
> Bike rack on all buses
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On-Street bike facilities
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Mode share
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Bikeway detour?
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Updating Boulder’s
WATCaSH
Work Area Traffic Control and Safety
Handbook
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> Adopted in 1980
> Outdated
> Policy but not practice
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Involve stakeholders
> Interdepartmental work group
> Transportation Advisory Board
> Barricade companies and
contractors
> Bicycling and walking
organizations and individuals
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Next generation document
Update process
> Address all modes
> Clear expectations
> Codified into code
> Supplement
MUTCD
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Traffic Engineering Responsibilities
Boulder Revised Code
1) The standards of the traffic engineering
profession and of the state and federal
governments;
2) Public safety;
3) The most efficient use of the streets and
city parking areas; and
4) The costs involved.
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WATCaSH Update Goals
> Assure public
safety
> Protect system
integrity and travel
mobility of all
> Achieve balance
among often
competing
impacts:
• environmental,
• financial and
• social impacts
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Interdepartmental Work Group
> Planning & Development Services
> Transportation and Utilities Project
Management,
> Transportation and Utilities
Maintenance,
> and Communications
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Key issues: operations
> When is it acceptable or necessary
to close public ROW?
> When a facility is closed, how should
that closure be handled?
> What factors should be considered?
> Would policies for closing a sidewalk
be different than for closing a multiuse path or bike lane/vehicular lane?
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Key issues: authorization
> What role does transportation
operations / planning staff have in
making decisions about closures?
• Review all public ROW closures or
• Grant authorization to project
manager/right-of-way inspector?
> Do we charge fee for closures?
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Key issues: other
> Non-standard signing
• City obligated to furnish
• Liability
> Communication
• Requirements for advance notice
• On site accountability
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Key factors of work zone impacts
> Duration and time
> Scope and size
> Type of facility impacted
> Type and amount of each mode
impacted
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Case Study Examples
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When are differing levels of impact
reasonable in interest of…
1. Safety, efficiency and mobility for all
modes of travel in the public right of
way; and
2. Financial costs involved with projects
and their related work zone traffic
control
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Carnegie between Baylor and Yale
Carnegie impacts:
> Sidewalk closure
> Three to 10 days
> Pedestrians detoured
to other sidewalk
sidewalk closure =
detour =
Example: sidewalk repair program
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The Peloton
Arapahoe impacts:
> North side multiuse path closed
for several months
> Temporary path
provided through
site during
construction
path closure =
path detour =
Example: redevelopment project
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N. Broadway bike lane project
> Phase II impacts:
> (Linden – Norwood)
> East side multi-use
path closed
> NB outside travel
lane closed to
motorists &
barricaded for path
detour
Path closure =
detour =
Lane closure =
Example: 2008 CIP project
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Draft policies
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Hierarchy of closures
Standard closures
> Closures that occur between 9 a.m. and 4
p.m.
> Gives implied authorization from traffic
engineer
> Includes some vehicular lane, sidewalk
and bike lane closures.
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Standard closure: vehicular lane
> Closure of one lane, where at least one
other lane for that direction or movement
will remain open; or
> A short-term closure –20 minutes or
less; or
> A rolling closure –generally stopped at a
single location for 20 minutes or less.
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Standard closure: sidewalk
>
>
>
>
>
A sidewalk adjacent to a roadway that is
classified as a “Local” roadway; and
Not within the CAGID or UHGID boundary
areas; and
The closure is to occur for one week or less;
and
Not the only sidewalk adjacent to the roadway.
Doesn’t require pedestrians to detour to a
sidewalk on a separate, parallel roadway.
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Standard closure: bike lane
>
>
A bicycle lane upon a roadway that is classified
as local or collector roadway; and
Closure is handled using the city of Boulder
Method for Handling Traffic (MHT) for bicycle
lane closures policy.
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Hierarchy of closures
Non-standard closures
> Any closure not defined as a “standard” closure
in Section 5-a is defined as a “non-standard”
closure.
> Authorization requires review from Traffic
Engineer and agreement on the method of
handling impacts.
> Non-standard closures include but are not limited
to the following types of facility closures…
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Non-standard closure: vehicular lane
>
>
>
>
Any lane closure during any time of day
outside of the 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. time
period; or
Any multiple lane closure; or
Any closure that requires a flagging
operation;
Any closure that detours traffic to
another roadway
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Non-standard closure: sidewalk
>
>
>
>
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Any sidewalk adjacent to a roadway classified as other
than a “Local” roadway,
Any sidewalk within the CAGID or UHGID boundary
areas,
Any sidewalk for the duration of more than 7 days.
Any sidewalk along a roadway where no other sidewalk
is adjacent to the roadway.
Any sidewalk closure that will require pedestrians to
detour to the sidewalk on a separate, parallel roadway.
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Non-standard closure: bike lane
> a bicycle lane upon a roadway classified
as an arterial;
> a contra-flow bicycle lane;
> a bicycle lane which requires the bicycle
traffic to detour to another roadway.
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Non-standard closure: path
> A multi-use path closure is never
considered to be “standard”;
> Detour plan required;
> Detour onto a facility where bicyclists
are not allowed to ride requires
temporary designation as multi-use path;
> Construction detour signing must be
furnished and installed by the Project.
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Detour options
1. Construct a temporary detour facility
2. Allocate a roadway lane as the detour
facility
3. Detour to the other side of the street
4. Detour to another corridor
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Closures requiring detours
> Must develop and execute a detour sign
and marking plan
> Sidewalk and multi-use path detour
signing must include but is not limited to
MUTCD signing to:
•
•
Inform users of facility closure
Direct users at each decision point along the
detour route to guide users around the
closure, including “End Detour” signing.
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Communication policies
Notification:
> The nature/purpose of the work;
> The time and duration;
> Anticipated impacts;
> Detour routes, if any; and
> Contact information
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Other policies
> Special events must adhere to
guidelines
> Emergency closures are exempt
during mobilization only
> Review fee structure for ROW
permits
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Progress on Practice
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Detour designating a sidewalk
as a multi-use path
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Detour using roadway lane
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Detour closing a wide shoulder
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Thank you
Please visit GOBoulder.net
For more information, contact Marni Ratzel
at [email protected]
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